Mark Reece
I’m afraid I won’t be regaling you all with any happy childhood memories of receiving sought after Nintendo consoles and games for Christmas, and that’s because I don’t have any. Now, I’m not implying in the slightest that I was a deprived child — far from it, in fact — but as neither of my parents gave two hoots about videogames in any way, shape or form, myself and my brother didn’t spend much time playing games over Christmas, even less so with other family members.
Also, due to me being a colossal SEGA fanboy ever since I was old enough to hold a Master System controller, we had very few Nintendo consoles in our house up until the turn of the millennium, at which point I really got into Nintendo in a big way. The N64, GameCube, Game Boy Advance and (most of all) Pokémon were my favourite ways to avoid spending time outdoors or doing my homework.
No, my fondest Nintendo-related Christmas memories stem not from my childhood, but only from the last few years. You see, the problem with my parents and games was that they could never fully grasp them, the finer points of thwarting Bowser’s latest maniacal kidnapping scheme or racking up the most kills in Goldeneye 007 eluding them altogether. But that all changed when my mother and stepfather first experienced Wii Sports. All of a sudden, games no longer consisted of precision jumping or inhuman headshot skills, but rather emulated real life activities that were easy for my non-gaming parents to comprehend and join my brother, my wife and I in playing.
Golf, tennis and bowling became firm favourites at my mum’s house not just at Christmas, but at all family get-togethers. A few years down the line, Wii Sports Resort became a sure fire way to get all family members together. Christmas in our house used to consist pretty much of lunch, followed by everyone scattering and doing their own thing. Now? Once we’ve spent a few hours in a sluggish stupor as we digest the copious amounts of turkey and pigs in blankets we’ve consumed, the Wii comes out and we all wile away the hours on Wii Sports Resort, Mario Kart Wii and Wii Party.
Last month, during Nintendo Life’s round table discussion of the GameCube and Wii — celebrating their tenth and fifth anniversaries respectively — I touched upon what I believe will be the Wii’s legacy long after it’s been replaced by the WiiU: it’s truly phenomenal and almost entirely effortless ability to bring family members of all ages together, engaging in activities they can all enjoy. I will forever firmly hold onto that belief, and for proof you need only look through the living room window of my mum’s house on Christmas day (although we may very well call the police; don’t say we didn’t give you fair warning), and soak in the atmosphere as my brother and I lock horns in a fierce battle on the links, or my mum pulls a surprise win out of the bag at the bowling alley. These are the fondest memories of playing Nintendo games at Christmas, and I look forward to being able to add to them every year.
Comments 39
Who is this Corbs guy? He must be really old.
Really touching story though
Great stories everyone.
@Zezzy you're joking, right? Everyone here should know who Corbie Dillard is.
Great stories everybody! Christmas is a time when smiles come upon your face all by themselves, without even thinking. Reading some of your stories made me smile and feel like I was experiencing them for myself. I can't wait until tomorrow!
These... th-these are b-better than any Christmas classic I've ever r-... read.
Great stories, everyone!
@Private-Pegasus
Corbie's story is so touching.
Where's the picture of Corbie opening the NES?
In the Christmas of 1990 my life forever changed, for under the Xmas tree there was but a Commodore Amiga 500 waiting for me. And here we are now... ^_^
No Hanukkah stories? I could sure share a few of them over the past decade!
Corbie, your story touched my heart.
While I greatly enjoyed everyone else's Christmas stories, I'll have to say that Corbie's actually made me cry, and I don't cry easily.
Merry Chirstmas everyone!
I liked Zach's story. But sometimes its obvious when there is a present under the tree that is shaped exactly like a Wii game or 3DS game. And then I have grandparents that wrap their presents in tissue paper...
@corbie's story
toucjing story! is there any chance you went to see "tron" in a movie theater that same year? siskel and ebert apparently liked it.
corbie that was a very sad story
Wow Corbs. thats a great story. Well I'm actually hoping to get a Donkey Kong Jr. Game & Watch for christmas. If not I'll buy one anyway But it would be great if I did.
All great stories, I'm about to cry from corbie's though, great story
@zezzy and AtomicWaffles Oh, im sorry if i sounded like a jerk, wasn't meant that way. forgive me.
Great stories, Nlife stories are always either very funny or very touching.
Great stories guys! I hope a copy of Skyward Sword is waiting for me under the tree tonight...
I enjoyed Mr. Reece's story the most. Great read overall nonetheless.
@10: I guess since Chanukah is a less popular holiday, they don't bother with and article for it...I still want one, though.
Ah, the Donkey Kong Game & Watch, nice. I remember when I got mine in the 1980's, too. Still have it, although it took a beating unlike the one in the picture. I never had an Atari, though. Matter of fact, I did get one Atari 5200 with a whole bunch games for X-mas '86, but it only worked for one hour. I had to return it the next day and, oddly, there were a whole bunch of people in line returning theirs with the same problem as well. Guess what I ended up getting instead? It had a robot and a light gun. *grins
This isn't my favourite memory, but when I was younger, my brother was obsessed with Pokemon (though he still is, at 18, not as much though). Anyways, I saw this on a Family Video, but he unwrapped his gift and he shouted "Pokemon! My Favourite Favourite!" I was beside him, also being a fan, I saw they we're stickers and said "they're stickers..." He had such a disappointed look on his face after, my whole family haves fun teasing him with this memory.
Corbs is even older than me then, and I thought I was getting on a bit heh... but I recall a Atari 2600 related Christmas, before the crash, before we then switched to a Commodore 64...
Mine has to be just this last year, actually. I really don't care much about what I get, so I usually just ask my grandparents for a gift card each year. I already knew she was determined to wrap things for everyone last year, but I just couldn't think of anything so I asked for a gift card anyways.
On Christmas, however, there was a box many, many times the size of a gift card. She said it was clothes, but laughed mysteriously when she said it, so I was somewhat confused. When it came time to open it, I unwrapped the gift, and there it was: another layer of wrapping paper. So I unwrapped that, and there was the box: I opened it, and there was another layer of wrapping paper. This went on for about 2 or 3 more boxes and 5 more layers of wrapping paper before finally arriving at the gift card. By the end of it, the whole family, including me, had been laughing hysterically.I can't wait to see what she has up her sleeve tomorrow.
My Christmas memories are actually primarily focused around the new game systems. Game Boy Color, Game Boy Advance, N64, Game Gear, GameCube, DS, DSi, Wii, and the NES on my very first Christmas. Roughly a third of my Christmases were pretty much defined by the new game systems I got and, save for one, it's all been Nintendo!
Actually, the only systems I own that WEREN'T Christmas gifts are my Genesis (birthday), my SNES (two birthdays later), and my 3DS (first system I purchased myself).
Great stories, guys. Hope you have more memories for next year! Merry Christmas!
That one made me cry a bit, Corbs. Very sorry for your losses.
i dont wantanything new. i like old games, like on SNES. im getting a portable one tomarrow morning and it has a TV output too! im getting super mario world and super starwars.
Interestingly enough, Christmas for me involves not getting new games on Christmas but playing them with my cousins. There has not been a single Christmas when my two cousins and I have not been racing neck-to-neck in Mario Kart DS...
Still, though, Nintendo played a part in it.
Good god, it's Christmas again, already? I still remember last years version of this... holy crap, where'd my year go? D:
Christmas 2003, I received my GCN with Kirby Air Ride for my 7th Christmas, it was the best present I've ever received in my life ;A;
I was shocked to not see James Newton here but nice stories guys. I love this time of year, however I fell time speed up each year and I could easily wait longer and get more sleep. I love my little sister but the noise prevents my sleep. My older younger brother and me always get some new game and play each year since we got our gameboy colours years ago. However him and everyone else thinks I'm becoming a Scrooge, my lost of love for every little thing and extremely calm personality is making my love of the holiday "vanish". Of course I still love this time of year even if I don't show it with going to bed late and getting up early in excitement, anymore. Also we started playing ds games at grandmom's in the evening, I hate saying it but entertaining all of my younger relatives is not quite fun. They have no focus, nor can they stay on a single game for long. At least they have been keeping themselves busy the last few years.
I would have a merry Christmas if there were some VC Games on WII!!!
I never had a SURPRISING Christmas that made me so happy although I did get happy when I was younger than 11 but now uh not so much cause I buy my own stuff.
Aweome stories guys. My favorite gaming christmas was in 1999 when I got pokemon Red with brand new gameboy color. that was the first system of my own. gonna go celebrate the reason for the season.
@Corbie What an amazing story! I have similar stories about me and my older sister "breaking" our Atari 2600 every single year and Santa mysteriously knowing this each Christmas and bringing us another one each year! LOL. And I remember waiting in line for the Pac-Man (yes, that one) Atari 2600 game for hours and hours at a local grocery store in the early 80's. hehe... Your grandfather sounds like a wonderful guy, and I know he is in heaven now smiling down on you even to this day. Thank you for sharing your sweet story. Merry Christmas everyone!
Happy Christmas and Hannukah everyone.
You know, my major console triumphs never happened at Christmas, for some reason I always got consoles or portables on my birthday, or when the end of the year report card came home.
I think I got a Gambe Boy Advance one Christmas when I was...8 or something. It came with a Bomberman game that I adored, but I forgot the name a long time ago.
Getting the free GBA does induce a bit of nostalgia, particularly the Mario Vs. DK. My friend and I always laughed when the TV says "Mmm Bananas, Mmm-"
Have a great break everyone.
Great stories.....love thinking about all of those good memories. And it's odd how almost all of my past Christmas excitement has been based around Nintendo.....hadn't thought about it. nes, snes, game boy, game boy color, gba, gba sp, game cube, wii, ds.....and yesterday.....my 3ds. Sadly, i never got a 64.....could only afford one system, that's when i got my Playstation. But honestly, thank you Nintendo. You've added so much magic and excitement and joy to my life.....
Loved reading your stories, people. Corbie's is worthy of being a script to one of the best Christmas movies ever made. Just by reading this i already like your grandfather a lot. My sympathies for your loss there.
And heed Zack's words, people. Don't ruin what could be one of the best surprises of your lives.
Except for my father and my aunt my family isn't interested in gaming at all so i don't associate Christmas with any games. I can't remember ever getting one as a gift.
While i know that i've brought my Wii to one or two family meetings and that we had fun with Wii Sports, some of us even with Guitar Hero 3, it didn't really blow their minds.
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